


Rogue Nail

by taylor_tut



Category: Camp Camp (Web Series)
Genre: David Whump, Gen, Injury, Max Cares, Mild Blood, Whump, dadvid, hurt character, hurt david, max love he camp dad
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-03
Updated: 2018-04-03
Packaged: 2019-04-17 17:31:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,419
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14194056
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/taylor_tut/pseuds/taylor_tut
Summary: David cuts his leg pretty bad on a nail from the dock. Max tries to help.





	Rogue Nail

When David yelped in the water, the kids didn’t assume much of it. Max didn’t so much as look at him, not at first. It wasn’t uncommon for him to scream like that. The top three theories Max immediately formed were that either 1) Nurf had pulled him under the water and surprised him, 2) he’d spotted Nikki with a dead fish, or 3) some combination of the first two.

“Back, kids; everyone out,” David demanded, using a rare authoritative tone. “Out of the lake, please. Don’t use the dock.” 

Max tried to crane his neck far enough to see what David was griping about, but the campers shuffling out of the water blocked his view.

“What happened?” Neil asked no one in particular, hoping that someone nearby had seen something, or at least thought of a good rumor to fill the time until they knew the real story.

“I don’t know,” Preston said. “David was climbing up the ladder onto the dock to get me sunscreen and all of a sudden he was yelling at everyone.”

“I bet he got bit by a shark,” Nikki theorized, biting the air in front of Neil.

“That’s stupid,” Max dismissed; “this is a freshwater lake.”

Nikki huffed. “Yeah? Then why’s the water turning all red?” 

That gave Max pause. He glanced over toward David to see him stepping out of the water which, indeed, had turned a frightening shade of pink in a small circle around him, and struggling onto the wooden dock. 

“Campers,” he announced, “can you all go get Gwen for me?”

Nerris looked near tears, the sight of blood sending waves of panic through her body--she was a mage, not a cleric. “Are you okay?” she asked in a trembling voice. 

David smiled, but it was watery and strained. “I’m fine,” he replied, “just a little cut. I need Gwen to bring the first aid kit.” Max failed to see how that required  _ all _ the campers, but he let it go--it was probably easier to get them out of here than to have to calm them down from a panic about a little booboo. 

Max sure as hell wasn’t moving, though. It was stupid to walk the whole way back to camp, then all the way back just to put a band-aid on David’s paper cut. He was sitting on the dock, breathing raggedly and looking… pale, even for David. His hands were covering a wound on his leg.

“So, got a splinter?” Max taunted, “or worse--did a cattail brush up against you?”

David didn’t give him the scolding look he’d expected. Instead, he cracked a weak smile and chuckled. “You got me,” he said, “now, will you go with the others, please? You can still catch up.” 

That--that wasn’t like David. Something wasn’t adding up, and Max wasn’t going to leave until it did. David brushed the sweat off his forehead and streaked his skin with red. 

Max’s stomach flipped a bit, but he tried not to show it. “You’ve got some blood on your face,” he said blandly, frowning when David didn’t react. He was looking pretty drained, now. “David?” he asked, unable to keep the slight tint of concern from edging into his tone, “Earth to David?”

David looked up at Max when he took a few steps toward him on the dock, his hands leaving his injured thigh to shoot out in a motion intended to keep Max from coming closer. “Max, don’t--” he demanded, and Max’s eyes widened. 

“Holy shit,” he muttered, “that looks really deep. What did you cut it on?” 

David covered the wound back up with his hands to prevent Max’s probing eyes. 

“There’s an exposed nail on the dock,” he admitted. “That’s why I made everyone get out.” 

Max nudged David’s hands out of the way slightly and winced at the blood gushing from the gash. It hadn’t seemed to lessen at all, and there was no way David wasn’t feeling that amount of blood loss. Plus, the cut itself had to sting like a motherfucker. 

“Piece of shit dock,” Max mumbled. “Doesn’t surprise me one bit that everything in this shitty camp is shitty.”

David’s eyelids fluttered almost imperceptibly. “Just glad it was me ‘n not one’a the campers,” he said, slurring just barely noticeably. His face had gone ashy and he was sweating. Max swallowed uncomfortably, shifting from foot to foot and thinking of what he should do.

“Uh, do you--don’t you think you should get out of the sun?” 

David nodded, but looked disoriented when he was on two feet. 

“Get up slow--David!” Max yelped when David came crashing back down onto the dock hard, his eyes fluttering. “You goddamn moron,” Max cursed, “I told you to do it slow.” 

David sat back up, probably too quickly, and rubbed his head, streaking blood through his hair. 

“Let’s get you back up,” Max instructed, trying to haul David up by the wrists but finding it difficult. 

“Hang on,” David slurred, “M’woozy.” 

Max dropped his wrists unceremoniously back to his sides and let David collect himself for a moment. “This kind of shit only happens to you,” Max observed bitterly. “Why can’t Nurf step on a rusty nail every once in a while?” David gave him a pointed look.

“Be nice,” he scolded. 

Max shrugged. “Whatever. It just feels like every time I turn around, you’re getting run over by a bus or attacked by wolves.” 

David winced. “I think I’m ready to get up now,” he said. 

“Slowly, this time,” Max snapped irritably. “If you fall in the lake, Gwen’s gonna fish you out with the pool skimmer, and there was a dead possum in it two hours ago.”

David grimaced. “I know,” he said, “I’m the one who got it out.”

Max did his best to support David as he stood, keeping him from swaying too far forward or back, and guided him to the shade underneath a tree. 

“Damn, that’s still really bleeding,” Max frowned. 

David waved his hand in an unconcerned motion. “It’s just cause I stood,” he said, drooping forward a bit. 

“David,” Max prompted, “ _ David _ .” He focused his eyes, with some effort, on Max’s own.

“Sorry,” David apologized. “Just a little dizzy.”

Max bit his bottom lip. David’s grip on the wound had slackened, so Max pressed his own small hands against David’s in an attempt to slow the bleeding. He winced and made a small whining noise from the back of his throat. 

“Suck it up,” Max bit. “Look, Gwen’s on her way up.”

David let himself relax, closing his eyes despite Max’s protests. 

Gwen was power-walking up the hill with a bag full of medical supplies, looking murderous. 

“What happened here?” she demanded, patting David’s cheek gently to try to get him to come back round. 

“God, he’s fucking out of it.”

“How long has he been unconscious?” 

“M’awake,” David chirped weakly. She rubbed her temples as she set the bag down next to David. 

“Yeah, barely,” she rolled her eyes. “Move your hands.” She drew a sharp breath through her teeth when she saw his leg. 

“Jesus,” she hissed, wrapping the cut tightly with gauze and tape, “how did this even happen? The kids said you were attacked by a piranha?”

David laughed. “Rogue nail,” he corrected, “but I like their story better.” 

Gwen nodded. “It  _ is _ cooler,” she admitted, “but unfortunately, if it’s a nail, you’re gonna have to get a tetanus booster. I brought the car to the bottom of the hill. Nurf and I are going to lift you up, alright?” 

Before he could agree, he was on his feet, going nearly limp to the horror of the campers. Gwen tossed her cell phone to Nikki. “You’re in charge, kiddo,” she said, “if you burn the camp down, so help me God--,” she trailed off, gesturing two fingers at her eyes then Nikki’s threateningly. “Call David if you need something and I’ll pick up.”

She wrestled David into the car, frowning. “Ugh, you’re getting blood all over the upholstery,” she complained. 

David gave her a wry smile, but said nothing, didn’t even open his eyes. “We’ll be back in a few hours.” 

The last thing Max saw as the car pulled away was David’s stupid fucking thumb’s up through the window, even only half-conscious, still worried about reassuring them he’d be okay. But he felt his heart rate decrease a bit and his shoulders lose the tension they were holding. 


End file.
